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St Helen's Big Bell
The biggest
bell in Malta
It could be said that the
inhabitants of Birkirkara had always yearned for a very big
bell, to put in the belfry of their magnificent baroque
church, dedicated to St Helena.
This is evident if only from the fact that the northern belfry
of the church was built somewhat wider than the other. The big
bell was to be placed there.
As early as 1891, Birkirkara had
its first big bell, cast by Guze' Grech. Unfortunately,
however, this bell did not last long. Another big bell was
cast, this time by the master-artisan from Bormla, Gulju
Cauchi. According to the press of that time, this bell had a
wonderful tonality. Yet again, it did not last long. |
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The big bell,
which today hangs in Birkirkara's belfry, took one year to
make. Only ten months were needed to collect the required
funds. The bell was cast on the 24th September 1931, in the
Baricozzi foundry in Milan. Its tonality was entrusted to the
care of the famous Maltese composer, Carlo Diacono.
On Tuesday, 12th January 1932,
large crowds gathered on the breakwater, at the entrance to
the Grand Harbour, as well as in the Upper and Lower Barakkas,
to watch the arrival of the new bell. At 9.45am, the M.V.
Garibaldi, which was bringing the bell from Italy, entered
Grand Harbour and berthed at Barriere Wharf.
After a considerable time, the
large crate, in which the bell was packed, appeared on deck,
and, to the ovations of the crowd, was gently lowered on to a
barge, which ferried the bell to the quay. There the large
crate was opened and, to make sure that the bell had reached
Malta in good condition, the Provost struck the bell twice,
with a hammer.
Later on, the bell was loaded on a
trailer, which had iron wheels and was drawn by two mules. On
arrival at Birkirkara, it was already sunset, and the bell was
left near today's Psaila Street.
On the 17th January, the bell was
ceremoniously carted to the square in front of
St Helena parish church. Hundreds
of parishioners took turns at pulling the cart, on which the
bell rested, from Psaila Street to the parish church.
The distance, already
considerable, was increased, due to the fact that some of the
organisers knew that certain parts of the shortest route were
unsafe for the conveyance of such a heavy bell. Accordingly,
the bell went only through streets which were deemed more
secure for the carriage of such a weight. From Psaila Street,
the bell passed near the Church of St Anthony, then to Main
Square, St Francis Square, St Helen Street and directly to the
Church's porch. Large planks, placed on the few steps, aided
the passage of the bell up the steps to the porch.
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There the bell
was placed on a stone structure, which had been built
from stones cut for this very purpose, from Tal-Balal (near
Naxxar), the master artisan Toni Parnis. Now was the time for
the entire population of Birkirkara to approach the bell and
see, at first hand, its great dimensions.
This is the biggest bell in Malta,
and the third largest bell in the world. According to Mr Guzi
Carabott, who weighed the bell by means of a spring balance,
the bell was found to weigh 100 qantar and 9 rotoli, apart
from the clapper, which weighed 5 qantar. The bell stands 10
feet, three inches high, and has a diameter of eight feet. It
cost £1300, in the currency of those times. Information
taken from Heritage Magazine No. 2 |
